FeesMustFall and the road ahead

Vice chancellors, students from the South African Union of students (SAUS – the council representing all the Student Representative Councils) and various other political organisations and a number of “experts” and “researchers” opened the Commission of Inquiry into Higher Education and Training (the Fees Commission) almost a year after the protests that brought it into being had come into fruition.

The self-evident lack of urgency of the state is perhaps only matched by the attitude and posture of vice chancellors, particularly from elite campuses, who appear more concerned with telling us what they think is not possible and unstrategic than actually finding ways to walk alongside students whose interests they claim to be working on behalf of.

Brazil: High school students show way forward for working class resistance

In September 2016 the Brazilian government published a Provisional Measure (MP 746) outlining a reform in secondary education that would have devastating consequences for the education system, disproportionately affecting majority-black working class students.

Students occupy schools

Students responded with direct action and occupied schools in the state of Paraná, with occupations soon spreading to at least six other states. One month later 600 high schools in Paraná alone had been occupied to protest the government’s attack on public education – which comes in the context of a broader attack on the working class through a Proposed Constitutional Amendment (PEC 241) that threatens to freeze public spending on health, education and social welfare until 2037.

Local government and municipal employees

Two decades ago, virtually all workers in the municipal sphere were permanent employees, directly employed by municipalities. Today this category makes up only half of workers.

Many are now employed by commercialised and corporatized municipal entities. Municipalities also oversee low-paid, short-term EPWP and other community-based programmes; and employ volunteers who do municipal work without remuneration.

However, the employees of outsourced private companies, contracted to municipalities, make up an ever growing proportion of all ‘municipal’ workers.

CSAAWU Robertson Winery Strike: Rural Resistance in Racist Robertson

Robertson is a typical Western Cape rural town. As you drive into the town on the main road it is clear that this town still has a relatively vibrant economy. The roads are well kept and are flanked by standard fast food outlets and quaint boutique shops catering to the tourist trade. A little further down the road are the shinning wine and brandy processing plants that, along with tourism, drive the economy of the town… as you drive a bit further however… beyond the sparkling façade of the processing plants, comes the areas where the workers live. Whilst there have been attempts to develop housing, the severe under delivery of said housing can be seen as shack upon shack creep up the hillside creating a stark contrast to the sheen of rich side of town.

Little change in 20 years

It is patently clear just from looking at the geographic layout and contrast between the white owned businesses and houses and black working class existence in this town, that very little has changed here in the last 20 years. You can feel it too, in the attitude of the people of the town, there is a very distinct feeling of repression in this (as in most) rural towns of this racially divided country.

Significance of the Labour Court ruling on CCMA rules of representation

The Casual Workers Advice Office (CWAO), Black Sash, the Maokeng Advice and Resource Centre and Ntombi Dladla took the Commission for Conciliation and Arbitration (CCMA) to the Labour Court on the 20 September 2016 to challenge CCMA’s rules on representation. They argued that the rule disadvantages many workers who do not belong to trade unions and who cannot afford to pay a lawyer. The rule in question, rule 25, states that only an office bearer, official or member of a registered trade union or a legal representative may represent workers at the CCMA. They wanted the Labour Court to change the rule to allow workers to be represented by advice offices, fellow workers and fellow parties to dispute so as to ensure fairness.